Behind The Hype
By Trevor K. McNeil
The Public Image
Media Studies and Communications are two academic disciplines that examine the content, history, and effects of mass media on the public. It is well-known that media is able to create a particular image. This is neither good or bad in and of itself. It only goes pear-shaped when the impression given is either deceptive, or lacking in important information. Such as making a boarish, pig-ignorant, retrograde failed businessman turned reality show host, who inherited close to half a billion dollars from Daddy but blew it all, look like a viable candidate for president of the United States. A distinct opposite being the case of Dr. Anthony Fauci,
Popularity Kills the Cred
The 21st century is littered with examples of fraudulent, or at least dubious individuals claiming the title “Doctor” or more often “Dr.” Most often in an effort to legitimize and profit from their self-serving point of view. Author and TV huckster Dr. Phil, does have a PhD in clinical psychology and once held a license in Texas. The state of Texas censured him more than once, for ethics violations. After settling those ethics violations, he gave up his license to practice in 2006. Dr. Phil has been sued twice in California for practicing without a license. So much for taking advice from this TV doctor.
Walking It Back
Another controversial TV doc is Dr. Oz. Oz seems to deny science when it suits his script. His recent appearances on Fox News on the subject of COVID-19 ignited a firestorm which he is still trying to walk back. During one of his shows, decked out in medical scrubs, as if that brought authentication to his words, Dr. Oz claimed apple juice was as dangerous for children as plutonium. He advised viewers to reject chicken and to embrace juice cleanses. Dr. Oz has been sued over numerous absurd claims that he has made on his now cancelled show. Conflating doctors on television with frivolousness at best and con artists at worst is good advice. Whether the TV doctor’s credentials appear impressive or inconsistent, remember they are there to “entertain” and make a buck. I have to add, the same goes for some crazy “advice” dispensed by a variety of “doctors” consuming space on the Internet.
Track Record
What then are Americans supposed to make of Dr. Anthony Fauci, who, unless they are history nerds or political geeks like me, likely know only from his regular appearances on CNN? Which, by the way, VP Mike Pence has stopped until CNN agrees “to telecast all White House briefings in their entirety.” Dr. Fauci’s day job, is the Director of the National Institute of Allergy and Infectious Disease. The NIAID is one of the 27 institutes and centers that make up the National Institutes of Health (NIH), an agency of the United States Department of Health and Human Services (HHS).
Decades of Experience
Dr. Anthony Fauci is 79 years old. He has served six presidents. Ronald Reagan appointed Dr. Fauci to his position as Director of NIAID in 1984. George W. Bush awarded Dr. Fauci the Medal of Freedom, the highest civilian award given by a U. S. president. None of the six presidents can be called bleeding-heart liberals. But all were at least smart enough, truly a lofty claim in the case of W, to listen to people who knew more than they did about contagious disease. Such a man is Dr. Fauci, a doctor and infectious disease researcher with decades of experience and impeccable credentials.
Keep On Truckin’
A person of science who actually follows the empirical method, Dr. Fauci has always put facts ahead of feelings or, indeed, political expediency. Such as his leading research into an HIV vaccine. His work was ground breaking and although a vaccine has not even yet been created, current medication therapy has given HIV patients many years of active life. The main issue to the work of his team, even before being appointed director of the NIAID, being the FDA. Undaunted, Dr. Fauci kept working, despite the ruling GOP’s unspoken policy of “look pretty and do as little as possible” when it came to the AIDS Crisis. A general attitude among the federal government that saw Fauci bear the brunt of anger among the LGBTQ community who, rightfully, felt ignored and, wrongly, assumed the issue lay with the federal institute responsible for researching it.
Blessed Are the Truth Tellers
Never before has a president hovered over Dr. Fauci like Donald Trump. We should all be concerned that Trump will silence this important voice on public health, sooner than later. Be aware he could be fired any Friday night after 10 pm. A time favored by Donald Trump. Despite weathering some of the greatest scandals in health with grace, Fauci is in danger daily of being dismissed without cause. There are many on the right who have been out to get Fauci. And the “very stable genius” of a president with a grasp of science so tenuous, he thinks that bleach injected into the blood stream is a method worth trying. Not to mention the president’s hyping of hydroxychloroquine as a magical cure for COVID-19, may be getting ready to dump the good doctor.
